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GOMA, DR Congo, July 24, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Clashes Thursday between the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group and Congolese militia in troubled eastern DR Congo killed 11 people just days after a ceasefire, local sources said.

The M23 has taken over large areas of eastern DRC since its resurgence in 2021. It seized control of the key regional cities of Goma and Bukavu in January and February following a lightning offensive.

Only last weekend in Qatar, the M23 and the Kinshasa government signed a declaration of principles including a commitment to a permanent ceasefire.

However, Thursday saw clashes in the town of Luke, in Masisi territory, around 150 kilometres (92 miles) from Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, residents contacted by telephone told AFP.

"We have a death toll of 11, including eight civilians ... and 21 injured, treated in local health facilities," a health source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"They could not be evacuated to Kiningi or central Masisi as the fighting continues," the source added, saying the Luke health centre, the largest in the region, "is destroyed."

"The clashes continue" in Luke, said John Shukuru, a resident, who said he had seen dead and injured.

"I fear the worst if the fighting continues," he added.

Alexandre Kipanda Mungo, chief of the Banyungu district which includes Luke, accused the M23 of being behind the attacks.

"The M23 have not abandoned war," added Mungo, accusing the group of having attacked Luke, Nyamabako and other localities in the area.

Lawrence Kanyuka, M23 spokesman, told AFP that "there are combats" in the zone, but he accused "Kinshasa regime forces" of attacking the group's positions.

Since the return to prominence of the M23, a large part of Masisi territory has slid from Kinshasa's control.

Previously, it was controlled by the Congolese army (FARDC) and a swathe of pro-Kinshasa militias conducting guerrilla operations.

These Congolese militiamen, nicknamed "wazalendo" ("patriots" in Swahili), sometimes wear civilian clothes, hence their affiliation to armed groups is difficult to ascertain with any certainty.

The Doha agreement was hailed by the international community as a "step forward" towards a comprehensive peace agreement in eastern Congo.

The mineral-rich eastern DRC has been plagued by conflict for more than 30 years.

Previous peace agreements and ceasefires have been violated in recent years while, since February, the front lines had not shifted.